Keeping Me Warm
by AllyKat82
Summary: This is a slight AU with heavy Kirito X Lisbeth leanings. I try to make it clear where I alter the timeline and (usually) why. Also, I was inspired to do this after finding Festus Flare's "Forging Bonds" here, otherwise I would never had written this. Rated M due to chapter four. Lisbeth's POV. Needed disclaimer for story is here: I don't own anything. R&R please.
1. Under That Bridge, Amid Hope

**Real quick before it starts, sections in italics will be used to show flashbacks or alterations in the canonical timeline. Furthermore, this story hinges on the premise that Asuna couldn't get past her frustration and just lay down on the grass when invited to, which is what she attributes to the first time she started feeling something for Kirito. Don't believe me? Go listen to what she tells Nashida just before they teleport back to Grandzam.**

 **Also, it's just a story. Honestly. Please read and review and send me your thoughts. I plan on it being a five parter, but who knows? Also, leave your vote to keep this light fluff or to add some fluffy lemon or not.**

 **Link Start**

 _"_ _If you'd just lay down on the grass, you'd understand." the black-clad swordsman said, yawning and shutting his eyes again._

 _"_ _You're impossible," huffed Asuna before turning and storming off._

 _"_ _Your loss," thought Kirito sleepily before he drfted back into his doze._

* * *

"You should really tell Asuna what you just said." I mumbled, trying to sound cheery.

"Lisbeth, I…"

"Kirito, promise me something? Promise me you'll put an end to this world."

His silence made me turn to him, and I saw the conflict in his face.

"What is it?" I was worried I had insulted him.

"I swear, I will beat the game," he said, looking away for a moment. "I'll make sure we all get back to the real world."

"Till then, you're always welcome in my shop, Kirito!" I said with a forced grin.

He took a step forward, his eyes locked onto mine.

"About what I said," he started, rubbing the back of his head, and I felt my heartbeat increase as the distance between us closed.

"Lis, I meant what I said about wanting to live, about being glad to be alive again. It wasn't that I had merely managed to save a party member, it was more than that."

He was so close, close enough to touch. The rest of Aincrad seemed to fade, becoming washed out and muted compared to the vibrant color around him. I felt my cheeks burn as he took my hands.

"I truly felt alive in that cave with you. For the first time since…" his voice broke for a second, his grip wavering. I squeezed his hand as he took a deep breath.

"I haven't felt like that for a long time," he finished. His face lost it's dark cast, breaking into a small smile. "I finally felt like living for more than just avoiding death."

He pulled me into an embrace, causing a full force blush to creep up my neck as my heart began to race.

"Thank you, Lisbeth," he whispered. "Thank you for giving me a reason to live again."

I was shaking as I returned the hug. Did this mean…was this…

"I think I'll take your offer to be my exclusive smith. In fact," he said, eyes twinkling. "How about I show you something I haven't shown anyone before?"

I cocked an eyebrow at him. "What do you mean?" I asked in a guarded voice.

"You asked me why I wanted another sword equal to or better than what I had," he said, pulling up his menu. A few button presses later and the Dark Repulser appeared over his left shoulder.

I frowned at him as I waited for whatever his explanation was when it hit me.

The sword I forged was slung behind his left shoulder, but his Elucidator was still equipped, hilt standing behind his right shoulder. I stared as he looked around before drawing both and powering up a sword skill _with both swords!_

"What in…how are you doing that?" I asked.

He quickly sheathed the swords and unequipped Dark Repulser. "A couple weeks ago, I was checking my skills and I saw a new one listed; Dual Wielding. As near as I can tell, it's a unique skill, not listed anywhere on the info brokers lists." He blushed and rubbed the back of his neck. "I hope you'll keep this between us. I don't want it getting out until it absolutely has to."

I smiled. "That's why you wanted an equal sword," I said. "You didn't want to pair your Elucidator with a lesser quality blade; its durability would never stand up to whatever you had to put it against if you used them in tandem."

He was still looking at the ground as I walked up to him. I reached up and cupped his chin, turning his face towards mine.

"Thank you," I said, smiling. "For sharing that with me. For trusting me with that information."

He stared at me for a second, and I thought I saw a flash in his eyes and a hint of red on his cheeks before he turned away.

"Well, if not you then who else?"

"I thought Asuna…"

"Asuna and I never really get along," he said, turning back to me. "She's calculating and a great battlefield leader, but she's so focused on clearing the game that she isn't willing to take time and live. She's convinced that for every day we're in here is a lost day IRL. But she respects me, and that's why she recommended you."

My heart soared, but I pushed it down before speaking. "Then that's why she seemed confused when I told her you were a keeper," I whispered.

He laughed. "I'm not a keeper. Most players won't stand me if it weren't for the added help on the front lines I provide. She probably is still at your shop stuttering in confusion."

My courage grew again, and before I knew it, the warmth of his hand was encompassing mine again. "Kirito, I…"

He raised an eyebrow at me, letting me set the pace.

"Kirito," I shut my eyes and ignored the burning in my cheeks. "Kirito, I love you."

He looked at me with a surprised look on his face, but I had gone too far.

"I want to be more than just your smith, I want to get to know you more!" I said, the words bubbling forth. "That night was more than just an adventure, it was exhilarating!"

Rubbing my thumb along his, I continued. "The warmth of your hand, it was the first real experience I've had since this game started. I thought you were an annoyance and a vagabond when you first came into my shop, but now…"

I smiled and threw my arms around him. "I hope you feel the same. But I feel better letting you know."

I felt his arms close around me, enveloping me in warmth.

"Lisbeth, why do you think I came looking for you?"

* * *

Over the next few months, I came to see the Black Swordsman in my shop quite a bit.

And always with a repair order, to my slight annoyance. Honestly, I know he's a solo player but he could be a little more careful with his gear. One of these days he's going to push too hard and break one of his swords and for his sake, he'd better hope it's not mine.

Of course, he never just turns around and leaves after I work on his gear. He always sticks around for a few days and spends time with me. We've even had picnics on the 47th floor, surrounded by flowers and other couples.

Needless to say, we have to buy our picnics. Neither of us have very high cooking skills, though I'm working on it with Asuna's occasional help. When she found out about the two of us, she was happy for me.

"Good job, Liz," she whispered to me as she hugged me. "He's a keeper."

I just laughed, remembering saying that to her when I thought they were an item by mistake.

Today, we sat amid the gardens staring out at the sun as it set, my head nestled squarely into his chest, his arm wrapped around me.

Keeping me warm, as always.

End part one.


	2. In the Darkness, Amid Ambition

**So here we are, Part Two. I think I'll do Fluff, Crunch, Fluff, Lemony Fluff, Fluff if I stick to the five part outline I have. But, those of you reading are ultimately the ones that will dictate that. If you want a longer story, so be it.**

 **In regards to SAOs attributes and skill abilities, I had to guess since I don't have access to the light novels and they only graze over them in the Anime. For the sake of this story I have them as Strength, Stamina, Vitality, Agility, Defence, and Resilience. I also assume smithing is based on a level-dependant RNG because of Lisbeth looking at the sword she forges just before Kirito enters in "Temperature of the Heart" and saying 'Good enough, I guess."**

 **Link Start!**

"RAGH!" I swung as hard as I could at the Lizardfolk before me, the sharp edges of my mace's flanges shattering their shield and staggering them.

"Switch!" I heard from behind me and without thinking I dropped back and off to the side as a black blur sped past me and separated the Lizardfolk's torso from it's lower half. Kirito stood and smiled back at me as it burst into sparkling polygons.

"This was a great little workout," he said, rubbing a shoulder as he came back to my side.

I glared up at him from my bent over posture, the exertion of the fight finally catching up to me. "Easy for you to say, Mr. level 84. I'm still lagging behind in stamina."

He grinned again, that mischievous glint in his eyes making my heart flip-flop for a moment. "Should we go hunt Boars and Bears?"

I punched him on the arm. "Lets go, smartass." I shouldered my mace and began to advance through the dungeon.

It wasn't that we needed to go through here. It had been cleared for months, but it had comparable level mobs and it was good for me to increase my level as it would open up new smithing patterns or upgrade schematics. I had also managed to score an Uncommon level mace drop: Thundarion. Another level and I would have the STM and STR stats needed to wield it too. The stat boosts it gave made me tingle at the thoughts of what I could unearth.

A finger poked me between my gorget and backplate, shaking me from my reverie. "Drift off like that and I'll have to carry you out of here," teased Kirito.

Rolling my eyes, I continued on. Before we had gone too far, though, spawns started showing up - skeletons bearing armor and shields. I hefted my mace and grinned in a manner in which I was sure I had seen on Kirito's face in the past. Skeletons were weak against smash damage but had a bonus against slash. This was my domain.

I charged in, shouting and charging up the sword skill _Shield Break_ , letting me stun the enemy and lower their DEF for a few seconds. It connected with the lead skeleton, knocking its shield up and out as I followed up with a baseball swing to it's ribcage. The feel of the impact and crunch of bone along the metal haft of my weapon momentarily reminded me of the sound a softball bat made when catching a ball on the sweet spot. I dropped back to avoid the swing of a scimitar and made a backhanded swing to shatter its sword arm. It's HP was down in the red, but not fully gone. I started charging _Titan's Fist_ , calling for Kirito to cover me.

As the next skeleton circled around me during the charge phase of my attack, it was smashed away by the sweep of a dark blade. It flew away, bursting into polygons as it contacted the wall. Bonus against slash they may have, but my Kirito hits like a freight train.

 _Titan's Fist_ hit full and I swung, smashing my mace into the floor, causing a tremor effect rippling out, reducing the remaining skeletons movement. I swung an overhand blow, dashing the skeleton I was facing into the ground and ripping the remaining red from his health gauge. I dashed forward quickly, thrusting the point of my mace head into the 'face' of one of the still slowed skeletons. The cap of my mace was broad and reminiscent of a hammer's head. It doesn't do much damage but it does stagger opponents if I time it right.

And I've gotten better at timing thanks to these frequent outings with Kirito. I may have been competent with a mace, but I never realized how many additional mace skills there were till I asked Kirito to help me level up so I could gain a higher smithing skill.

Smithing in SAO is odd. Like in most RPGs, it's based on skill and you can increase your skill by working on it more. There was also a level cap that limited what you could do at each level.

But unlike other games where you could choose what to forge, SAO only gave you the type of item and a RNG determined the grade and quality of weapon. It helped narrow down the probability of higher grade weapons depending on the metal being used, but it was still something of a crapshoot. I had been really lucky when I forged Dark Repulser. It could have just as easily been a high grade broadsword that had come out instead of a unique longsword.

The higher your skill, the higher the quality of your work, though you still had a range of quality you would produce. If I could hit 60, I'd be able to regularly craft Artisan level weapons with a higher chance of producing both Master and Rare level beyond that.

I swung out to my right as the skeleton began to take a backwards step, knocking it's shield out and happening to foul it's companions sword swing, forcing it to change it's approach and clipping a bit of my target's HP in the process.

I dropped into a crouch, powering up _Typhoon Gale_ as I did so. This was the most powerful sword skill I posessed, causing area of effect damage as well as primary target damage with a six hit combo, but it left me exposed due to a STM debuff cooldown effect.

"Kirito, I'm winding up!" I called, letting him know my plan. He angled to intercept the two stragglers as the sword skill hit full charge. Yelling out, I spun, taking my mace across the skeleton's shins, pelvis, ribcage, and skull. The ground around me became a spinning maelstrom of stone chips, battering both my main target and it's wingman, wearing away at their health gauges. I continued my spin, lining up the final two hits of the combo; a downward smash through against my main target's clavicle and an upward angled backhand against it's ribcage.

It burst into the morbidly beautiful death animation as the skill ended, a stun status appearing on the second skeleton before me as the cooldown hit, a small hourglass appearing at the end of my HP bar. I couldn't use another sword skill until the cooldown was over and my attacks would be slowed as well. Even though I knew it was a status effect, I was sunddenly tired.

I heard the crashing sounds as one of Kirito's skeletons was returned to digital limbo and I lifted my mace. The whirlwind AoE of my Typhoon attack had whittled between a quarter and a third of the last skeleton's HP away. It wasn't quite in yellow, but it was still stunned as I began my attack.

I took it across the shield, trying to stun-lock it, but my slowed attacks just didn't have the oomph to do anything beyond normal damage. It broke free from stun and swung, catching me across my breastplate and knocking me back a couple paces. It waded in and we circled warily, sizing each other up. The hourglass in my status screen started to slowly flash, indicating the cooldown was beginning to end. If I could keep the standoff for a few more seconds, I could prep another _Shield Break_ and the fight would be mine.

The skeleton leapt forward with surprising quickness and I almost didn't dodge in time, but I managed to get in a solid hit against its back as it overextended its reach. It righted itself and turned to look at me just as the hourglass disappeared. I immediately started charging _Hammer and Anvil_ , a quicker skill than _Shield Break_ and leapt in.

I took a scimitar hit across the arm, but my skill went off, plunging my mace through the ribcage of the skeleton as though they were made of cobwebs, the bits hanging in midair for a second before dissolving away into pixels. I saw beyond as Kirito gave his sword a swing as though flicking blood from its blade before sheathing it.

I started to lean over to catch my breath when a status screen popped up in front of me.

 **Congratulations, Lisbeth! 59 - 60. STR up, STM up, VIT up**.

And there, nestled at the bottom of my various attribute increases and skill status lists was what I had been working so hard for: **Forge Armor upgrade - Adamantine Backing. Forge Weapon upgrade - Adamantine Blade**. I couldn't help giggling and pumping my fist as I read it.

"Congrats, Honey," Kirito said, coming over and giving my shoulder a squeeze. I chuckled as we turned towards the entrance of the dungeon. "We made a fair bit of Col this run, not to mention some nice mid-grade drops. I'm sure you can find a use for them."

I slung my mace over my shoulder and slid an arm around his slim waist as we walked. "I say we spend some of that Col at the new cafe on Floor 62. I hear they have great sweets."

Kirito laughed, draping an arm across my shoulders. "You're lucky that food here doen't have real calories, otherwise we'd have to dungeon crawl just to work off the food you cook."

I jabbed an elbow into his ribs.

End Part Two

* * *

 **Ok, so the next part may be a few days in coming, since I'm trying to gear up for NaNoWriMo at the same time, but trust me that it'll be worth it. I've loaded all my romantic songs into a playlist for the writing of it. As always, Read and Review please.**


	3. Winterfall, Amid Memory's Shade

**Now, there are some things about us that not even the closest friends know, and the thought of telling them can be a scary prospect. Sun Tzu said that - to paraphrase - defeating yourself was a larger victory than defeating a million soldiers.**

 **Link Start!**

It was a long day, and this special order from this small mapping guild was only making me frustrated. They had all requested two handed swords made from speed type metals, as though it was as simple as that! Honestly, WHO wants a two hander that's quick? You sacrifice damages stats doing that. I had a pile of failed attempts that I had no clue what in the world I was going to do with when I was done.

"So, still working on the impossible?" a voice piped up from the door leading to the salesroom of my shop.

I glanced up to see a cloaked form leaning against the doorjamb, her smirk barely visible under the cowl. Argo the Rat had come calling.

"Did you find out anything?" I asked, pulling yet another ingot from the forge and setting it on my anvil.

"He's a tricky one to tail, I'll tell you. He spotted me no less than three times. I kept running out of reasons to be in the same place he was." She walked up as I set the hammer to the metal, pounding out the shape of a sword.

As the blade took shape, I picked it up and sighed. It fit the parameters of the order, but it hurt my professional pride to set such a weak two handed sword out for sale. As I placed the final blade and sheath in the crate for delivery, I heard a clatter on my workbench. Turning, I saw Argo dropping another dagger on it, along with a few coins.

Picking up one, I glanced at it and saw there was no wear on it, nor did it need to be sharpened. I looked at her with the question on my lips when she spoke up.

"In case loverboy walks in while I'm here." she said, lowering her hood. She leaned against the railing of my rear staircase. "Sorry, but I couldn't find out what's going on. I wish I knew just for my own curiosity."

I sighed with annoyance, waving off her next apology. Kirito had been acting strangely lately, moody ever since the snow had started to fall. I had asked Argo to find out why.

"Though, if I had to guess," she said thoughtfully out of the blue. "It could have something to do with what happened last year around this time."

I perked up. Despite having been with Kirito for six months I still knew so little about him beyond what I'd seen. I know his compassion and why he feels like he has to help, and I had heard from my colleague Agil why people called him a beater, but there were times he would be strangely quiet and distant, as though reliving some distant pain.

"He had been a member of a small guild, The Moonlit Black Cats," she said. "I remember hearing about how everyone but him getting wiped out in an anti-crystal trap in some dungeon on floor 24. He came to me looking for info on an item that could bring them back, even if only one."

I gasped, feeling my heart ache. I had seen people die, jumping from the ledge of the Town of Beginnings. The horror of this death game had struck everyone differently and I could only guess at how much worse the pain must have been to see a comrade die with nothing you could do to prevent it.

"Did he find it?" I asked quietly.

"Yeah," she said, looking down. "But it was only good it used within ten seconds of the death. Kinda pointless, if you ask me." She glanced over at me. "You should have seen his face before he left to confront the event boss. It was like he didn't care if he lived or died."

I felt tears fighting to break free, but I forced them back down. Kirito would need a reason to move on, and a crying girl wasn't the way to do it. "Thanks, Argo," I said, closing the crate with the guild's order in it. I paused, thinking.

"Argo," I said, causing the info broker to turn from the doorway. "Why was he so desperate to bring them back?"

"You'd have to ask him to know for sure, but from what I hear, he made a promise that he'd protect one of them, a girl named Sachi." She looked me in the eyes as she pulled up her hood. "How do you think he'd feel when he can't keep a promise like that?"

I stared at the floor, but when I looked up to thank her again, she was gone.

* * *

I caught up with Kirito on a hillside just outside of town, standing in front of the memorial wall that every major town had in it. He had his fingers tracing some of the names, eyes unfocused. I could see in his reflection that some tears had managed to break free from his gruff exterior, the trails still fresh on his cheeks.

I rushed up behind him and wrapped my arms around him, pressing my face into his back. He jerked back to the present, looking down at my arms and turning to face me, wrapping his arms around me.

"Hey, Lisbeth," he said awkwardly. "I didn't know you were up here."

"Shut up, Kirito," I said. I tried to glare up at him but I couldn't maintain it and I crushed my face against his chest. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"Tell you what? I'm not sure I follow…"

"About the guild you were in. About why you play solo even after all this time." I looked up at him. "You know you can tell me anything."

He looked around, nervously. "Come with me, ok?" he said, taking me by the hand.

After we wound up in his room, he opened up a trunk and removed a small message cube from it and set it on the table. Sitting down, he stared at the floor for a long time. I was about to prompt him when he started speaking.

"They were called the Moonlit Black Cats. I had helped them out with a rather tricky field mid boss and they insisted on buying me a drink. While we were celebrating they asked me to join, and not seeing any reason not to, I agreed. I was a lot higher than they were, almost double their average level, but I hid it from them. Word hadn't spread too far about the Beater, and I was tired of being alone. We had some decent adventures."

He blinked rapidly, eyes misting over. "There was one memeber, a girl named Sachi. She was a great kid, but she wasn't that strong. One night she ran off and I managed to find her under one of the bridges in the town. She was terrified of dying, of not seeing her family again." He swallowed hard. "I promised her that I'd protect her, that I'd help her get to the real world again."

He balled up his fists, so tight the leather of his gloves creaked in protest.

"But I failed. I wasn't able to protect them. We were in a dungeon for drops when one of them found a hidden door that wasn't on the map. They rushed in without listening to me or Sachi to be careful. It was a trap, and teleport Crystals wouldn't work."

His eyes weren't in the room anymore, they were back in that dungeon, the anguish on his face so plain to see that I felt myself aching. I went and sat next to him, rubbing my hand along his back in an attempt to console him.

"If I hadn't hidden my true level, maybe they would have listened to me," he said. "None of them were able to take the attacks of the mobs. Even I was hard pressed. And when I looked over at Sachi, trying to get to her, to protect her, I saw her eyes lock onto mine.

"I couldn't hear what she said as she died. I managed to get out, but there were times I wish I hadn't. I heard that the event boss might drop an revival item and went on to get it." He gestured at the message cube. "The Item was useless, and when I got back to my room that night I received that, from Sachi. She had set it up to deliver on Christmas Eve. A sort of just in case message." He poked the button, setting the cube to life.

As the cube played, the cheerful voice of a girl telling him how she felt, I pulled him into a hug. He was so limp, so weak that I couldn't stand it.

"Thank you…goodbye," the voice said and the cube fell to the tabletop. I felt tears on my cheeks. Now I knew. I knew what he viewed as his single worst failure.

"It wasn't your fault," I whispered, kissing the crown of his head. "Kirito, honey, they didn't die because of you."

"I know," he said, gripping my hand. "In my head, I know that, but in my heart, I wonder if there was more I could have done. Whenever I see this snow, I keep remembering that despite all the strength I have, in the end it didn't matter. I couldn't even save one person."

His voice was so sorrowful that I don't remember sitting up, pulling him upright. I don't remember staring at him, seeing his distant gaze.

I do remember the look on his face after I slapped him. The shock, the abrupt return to the present.

"Don't you _dare_ think like that, Kazuto Kirigaya!" I shouted. "You did everything you could in a rigged trap to save them, but they died anyway. You didn't fail them, and they didn't fail you. If anyone is to blame in this, it's Kayaba." I glared into his eyes.

"I trust you with my life, you know, and I don't regret that. You protected me against the dragon, despite my not listening to you. You got me out of that nest and watched my back countless times since then." I softened my face and cupped his face in my hands. "I wouldn't trade that for anything. And if Sachi was here, she'd tell you the same, I think."

He looked at me in shock. "Rika," he stammered.

I smiled. "I love you, Kirito," I said, leaning forward and resting my forehead against his. "Faults and all. I can't ask you to forget them, I know. But could you try to forgive yourself? For me?"

He just looked into my eyes for a second, wordless. Then he leaned forwards and kissed me, making my heart flip-flop as a delightful warmth spread through me.

"Lis, how is it that you're so smart?"

I grinned, running a hand down his arm. "I'm not, I just don't like people putting down my love. _Especially_ when it's my love doing it."

I scooted to the front of the bed, leaning against the headboard, pulling him along and letting him rest against my shoulder. Just this once, I'd protect him, comfort him.

"Tonight, just remember them. Smile, laugh, cry if you have to. But tomorrow, no more blaming yourself, ok?"

"What are you going to do?"

"I'm going to be here for you, if you need me. Remind you that there are reasons to keep going and that you have nothing to be ashamed of." I stroked his hair. "You're only human, after all."

* * *

When I woke up the next day, he was already gone. I got up and went to my shop to see about business, repairing low durability items, upgrading a few weapons. I was about to close up shop when Kirito walked in. He looked like he hadn't gotten much sleep.

"Where have you been?" I asked conversationally.

"Around. You got time enough to do a bit of maintenance on my gear?"

I sighed, gesturing at my workbench and I grabbed my smithing hammer. When I got to the table, though, there was only one item on it.

A single small box with a note attached. Kirito had already left.

I picked up the note with trembling hands.

 _Rika,_

 _Thanks for last night. I suppose I needed to hear someone else say what I've tried to tell myself for a year now. I_ _t's hard to forget sometimes what Sachi's last words were, that she doesn't blame me if she happened to die. I just hate letting her down._ _But I also hate letting you down. Sorry for cutting out on you last night, I had to go find Agil and get a special request made._ _What's in the box is for you, if you want it. Whatever your choice, find me and tell me at the memorial. You know where I'll be._

 _Kazuto._

I stared at it, numbly. We had told each other our real names one night on the way back to town after a sunset. I don't know what prompted me to ask, but the fact that we had this one secret against the world made me feel special. It also became a way to show when we were being dead serious. Just like he would sometimes stretch out my name to be playful, a reminder of the quest we went on after meeting. I actually loved hearing him call me "Lisss-Beth" from time to time.

I picked up the box and opened it, and inside was a solid silver band, unadorned and nestled in velvet. I gawked for a second, then snatched the ring and fled my shop, racing to the memorial.

Kirito was in front of the names of the Black Cats again, hands in his pockets and back straight. He turned as he heard my boots clomping across the floor. I dove into his arms, wrapping him tightly in my embrace and kissed him as we fell over.

"I take it that's a yes?" he said when we came up for air.

I punched him on the chest and showed him my hand with the ring already glittering there.

"Of course, dummy."

We kissed again, the snow gently falling around us. But there, in his arms, my husband's arms, I couldn't feel the cold.

End Part Three


	4. At night, Amid Passion's Pledge

**I've never written lemon before, so please don't throw things at me if this sucks ^^;**

 **Link Start!**

I fidgeted as I stood waiting, glancing up at my game time indicator. He was late again.

Sighing, I turned and sat down on the ledge of the teleport circle in the square of Lindarth. Couldn't he at least be on time for this, of all things? I toyed with the ring on my left hand, still a bit giddy from his proposal and the weird way he went about it. But that was Kirito, and I wouldn't have it any other way.

Not for all the Col in SAO.

"Late again, eh, Lii-chan?"

I turned to face Argo, who was leaning against one of the pillars next to me. She never called anyone by their right name, but that was part of her character. I had asked her to keep an eye on my shop while I was gone. I had an NPC shopkeeper, but they couldn't protect the store at night.

"When isn't he?" I said, adjusting my coat against the cold. "I had hoped that he would have at least been on time for our own honeymoon."

"I'm not _that_ late, am I?" said a voice from behind us. Turning, I saw Kirito with a small rucksack slung over his shoulder.

"Tell me again why we're actually using packs instead of our shared inventory," he said, hefting his bag and mine as we climbed onto the teleport pad.

"Because things in them can't be seen by the other, and surprises are fun," I said playfully, waving to Argo. "But I promise you'll enjoy them too."

"Have fun, Lii-chan, Kiri-bou." said the info broker before turning and walking away.

* * *

When the teleport wave had finished, I looked out onto the wide forest of floor 22. A wing spring-like breeze came in and I held my hair from my face as we stepped down. I looked around and could't see much to say about the sleepy little village of Coral.

"This is a charming little place, Kirito," I said, taking his arm in mine. "Where are we staying?"

He grinned slyly. "Not here. It's a surprise, Liiss-Beth."

I elbowed him in the rib, but nowhere near as hard as I usually do. My stomach was full of butterflies and I was afraid that if I spoke they'd fly out of my mouth. He led me down a smooth, unpaved path that wound through the woods. After some time, I spied a small cabin nestled back in the woods, complete with a large porch and yard.

"I've never heard of this place," I whispered as we walked up. "Who owns this cabin, Kirito?"

He chuckled as he set the bags down inside the door and turned to me. "I do."

I stared at him. "Well, technically, Argo and I do, but she says a place like this isn't her style, so I bought her share of it. We got the option to buy as a joint drop for an event quest a couple months ago." He came over and swept me up in his arms, and kissed me before taking me in a bridal carry.

I giggled and blushed the entire way across the threshold.

We settled in relatively quickly, furnishings simple and mostly of wood construction like the cabin itself. We found an adequately stocked kitchen, a well out back and a stack of firewood already chopped and stacked. I noted that the woodman's ax had a familiar black coat slung across its handle. I eyed my husband suspiciously.

"Yeah, I was here chopping some extra wood. I must have missed you on the way to your shop when I got back. I wanted to make sure we could start enjoying our time off immediately."

I kissed him hard and then went out onto the balcony that lead out from the bedroom. The sun was heading towards evening, and it glittered off the lake like a million diamonds. I was so absorbed in the beauty of the sight that I never noticed as Kirito came out and put his arm around my waist.

"This is the best house, Kirito. It's perfect."

He chuckled. "And it's a good thing it's already paid for and furnished, otherwise we'd be totally broke. Argo and Agil helped pay for them as sort of a wedding gift."

I reached over and poked the bed, feeling a mix of firm yet soft. "Hey, Kirito," I said, mind drifting for a moment.

"Hmm?"

"I just thought of a downside to living here,"

"What's that?" he asked.

"It's a long trip to town just to go to work." I turned to him. "And the site in Lidarth is perfect for what I offer gear-wise. I don't particularly want to relocate."

He smiled and pulled out a towerlike crystal from his rucksack. "One corridor crystal, courtesy of Asuna. It's set to your shop and if my guess is right, she and Argo are setting the final touches for it now." He set it down on a small vanity. "Don't worry, everything was thought of day before yesterday. Why do you think I was so tired?"

I kissed him again, then turned and pranced downstairs. "And what shall we have for dinner, then?" I called up to him.

"Whatever you want is fine," he said as he ambled after me. "You've long ago surpassed my cooking skill."

* * *

After cleaning up the dinner dishes, I went and sat on the porch, watching the last rays of the sun filter through the forest. Living where I did, both IRL and in SAO, I never had the chance to see sunsets like this. Part of me wanted to forget that this was a deadly world, where we could die for real. But you could say that about the real world, too. I looked back on my decision to stop adventuring and settle down and live a life as best I could. I didn't fault the assault team for not doing the same, seeing as how I did want to get out and see my family again, introduce Kirito to them, go shopping with Sillica and Asuna, and have an egg cream again. Oh, how I missed them, fattening though they could be.

"Lis, I'm heading to bed. I want to get up early and take in the sites."

I turned and smiled. "Go ahead, I'll be up shortly." _And you will be in for a surprise,_ I thought to myself, thinking of some of the things I had in my bag.

I went upstairs, finding Kirito still standing by one of the beds, tugging at the collar of a loose shirt. He looked at me with an odd look. "You're not going to change for bed?" he asked as he pulled back the blanket.

I stepped up to him, kissed him, then shoved him down onto the bed. While he recovered, I swiped through my menu and unequipped the red dress I usually wore, revealing the lacy camisole and boyshorts I wore. He froze, and I slowly climbed onto the bed with him, breathing in his scent as I settled myself astride his chest, nose to nose with him.

"Lis, I…" he stammered.

"Kazuto," I said, laying a finger across his lips to silence him. "Find a better use for those lips. Now."

He kissed me, timidly at first, then with building passion. I returned his kiss, parting my mouth slightly and probing his mouth with my tongue, soon battling against his for dominance. He tried to sit up several times, but each time he did I shoved him back down. I wanted to control this night, part out of a desire to be able to say I won over the Black Swordsman in something, and part because I was scared out of my mind and I could function better if I set the pace.

He moved his kisses down my neck, sending a shiver down my spine and a slight moan escaped my lips as I ran my hand through his hair, holding him against my collarbone. "Kazuto," I panted, feeling my cheeks flush. "Could you at least get undressed, too? It's embarrassing to me and impolite to have a scantily clad lady in bed with you fully dressed."

He stopped kissing me for a moment, and though I knew why he was doing it, I felt a surge of disappointment as he disengaged for a moment. I started nuzzling his neck as I heard his menu screens scroll before his shirt and trousers disappeared. I ran my hands along his chest, feeling the ridges of his muscles. They weren't bulky like a lot of the older swordsmen were, but he was much sleeker, built for strength and speed. His stomach twitched as I trailed my nails along his belly, slowly following my fingers with kisses.

I could hear my heart thudding in my chest, a warm glow building as I kissed his collarbone and the dip in the middle. He tried to sit up again and I put a hand on his forehead and pushed him back down again.

"Move again, and you're sleeping on the porch," I warned. "Let me set the pace, I'm nervous."

He nodded, and lay his head back as I worked my way down to his navel, probing it with my tongue and sliding my hands across his chest. I glanced up at him, seeing his closed eyes and grinned working kisses along his stomach, I reached out and brought up my menu, selecting an option I rarely used before, disabling the ethics code. This would change things. I worked up his chest again, then took his right hand and brought up his menu, cycling through to the ethics code in his before focusing on his left ear while he clicked the button. He hissed as I bit down on his earlobe, then sucked on it slightly before working my way back down.

With the ethics code disabled for us, things were different. I blushed as he looked at my now evident nipples, hard with arousal and I became wholly aware of his turgid manhood. As I reached his hips, I cocked an eyebrow and flicked a finger at the waistband of his boxers. I slid off the bed to kneel beside it as he unequipped the last vestige of modestly between us.

I was captivated for a moment. I had snuck looks at websites and read erotica before, but nothing prepared me for seeing a penis up close and personal. I reached out and wrapped my hand around it gently, feeling it's strange dichotomy of firm yet soft. I stroked it and I felt it grow firmer in my grip. Kirito's hips twitched a little, and I grinned.

"Oh? Does someone like that?" I asked in a playful voice, the heat building in my body making it throatier than I had intended.

"Oh, yeah," he panted, sweat beginning to show on his body. I continued to stroke his cock, enjoying the fact that I had him literally in the palm of my hand, at my mercy. I then leaned forward and blew on the head, making him twich hard as a clear fluid began to leak out.

I wasn't expecting that, but I had heard about it. I leaned forward, and after a moment of hesitation, took his manhood into my mouth.

I heard his groan as I ran my tongue against the vein on the underside and slowly slide it further until I felt like I couldn't breathe. I worked my way back up and ran a hand along his stomach and long his glistening length. The salty aftertaste I had in my mouth made me want more, and I was soon taking as much of his cock as I could handle, a hand massaging his scrotum and thighs.

Kirito groaned and tangled a hand in my hair. I took my cue from his as he began to direct the speed at which I sucked him. I felt a pleasant dampness soaking my boyshorts and I pulled up my menu and stood, the rising moonlight coming in through the window and lighting me as I unequipped my clothing and stood for the first time naked in front of my husband.

He just stared, his cock still glistening with my saliva. I crossed my arms across my breasts, suddenly self concious and I half turned from him.

He sat up and took me by my arms and laid me on the bed, kissing me deeply. I wrapped my arms around his shoulders. He slowly worked down my neck, making me squirm as he sucked on one spot. When he got to my chest, he took one breast and began kissing it, following along the smooth curve down to the nipple, which he gave a gentle kiss before taking it in his mouth.

The warmth that had been sliding through my body suddenly became a flame, and I couldn't stop the moan from escaping my mouth. I tangled a hand in his hair and moaned his name as he suckled first one, then the other breast. I hadn't felt anything like this before, and I was having trouble staying in the moment.

He slowly moved down, still massaging my breasts and dipped his tongue into my navel, making me squirm even more. My hands replaced his on my breasts as his moved down my sides and along my hips. Kirirto shifted and settled himself between my legs, kissing down the inner sides of my thighs and trailing fingertips across my calves. I trembled with the sudden hyperawareness of his touch, my nerves on fire.

He moved up and then ran his tongue across my folds, making me jump. He reached around and wrapped his arms aroung my thighs, one hand coming around to spread me open. He didn't quite get it and I reached down and helped, excitment building as he probed my vagina with his tongue. I was floating, I couldn't be here with all these sensations in my body. It couldn't get any better, I thought.

Kirito found my clit.

I gasped, my entire body tensing at the sudden sensation. Kirito stopped and looked up with a worried look on his face.

"Are you ok?" he asked.

I grabbed the back of his head and pushed it back into my pussy. "Dont stop, please!" As he resumed licking and sucking on my nub, I felt that blaze continue to build and I sensed something on the horizon. I slid my hands all across my body, now reveling in the increased awareness of touch as my hands caressed breasts, stomach, neck, and face.

"Oh, Kazuto," I panted, feeling a wave of pleasure about to crash. "Don't stop, don't stop, keep going…ngghh!" my climax felt like a wall of love and bliss crashing into me and pushing me along the sea. I cried out several times as the wave ebbed and flowed, my vision whiting out for a moment. When it started to fade, I couldn't breathe fast enough and I found sweat coating my body.

Kirito sat up, his face glistening with my issue. I pulled him up and kissed him deeply, tasting a mildly tangy taste from my own come. He grinned and got ready to kiss me again, but I pushed him onto his back and straddled him, feeling his slightly deflated cock slide between the lips of my tunnel. I ground my hips against him for a few seconds, driven by instinct and felt him begin to swell again.

I leaned forward and kissed him hard, raising my hips up as I did so. I locked eyes with him and I took his manhood in my hand and lined it up with my entrance. "I love you," I said and sank down, inhaling as my insides were filled as they had never been filled before. I felt complete, and I just sat for a moment, letting the discomfort fade as my pussy adjust to this intruder. Then, I slowly began to rise up, working his shaft with my walls, hands on his chest. I started panting again, the blaze flaring up faster inside me.

Kirito reached up and began to caress me; stomach, sides, legs, breasts, and neck. He pulled me down for a kiss, and slid his hands around and fondled my ass, his fingers gripping tightly. I moaned into the kiss and rocked my hips, trying to get more of him in and delighting at the sensation of my clit rubbing against his body. I broke the kiss but stayed hunched over his body, hands framing his face as I rode his cock, no, rode my cock. This was now mine and no one elses. Just as everything about me was his and no one elses. We ceased to be two people in that instant and our moans mingled in the cabin. I felt the wave coming on again, even stronger and when it hit, I couldn't help but scream out in delight, spasming on top of my husband.

As the wave subsided, I found I was still rocking along his hips and his face was covered in sweat. "Rika," he grunted. "I'm close. I dont think I can hold out too much longer."

Reluctantly, I slowed and climbed off, feeling a strange sense of emptiness as I flopped down onto the bed next to him. I ached with need, I wanted Kazuto next to me, and in me, and right now, dammit!

"Kazuto, come on," I said, nestling down in the blankets and spreading my legs, running a hand along my pussy. "Come make me yours. Don't keep a lady waiting." I gave him a meaningful grin.

"As my lady wishes," he chuckeld. He rose up and settled himself above me. I guided him to the entrance and he slowly pushed himself in, giving back the sense of fullness I had just moments before. I reached up and gripped his shoulders from below as he began to thrust into me, slowly sinking his entire length in before withdrawing slowly. This continued, with minor variations in speed or force when I finally gripped his chin.

"Kazuto, I'm not made of glass," I said, rocking my hips up to meet his. "Take me and mean it!"

He surprised me with the next thrust. He began to piston himself into me with vigor, the sound of our bodies meeting echoing in the room underneath my moans and his grunts. I found myself trying to match him move for move but soon the tempo and the pleasure overriding my brain caused me to just lay there and writhe in ecstasy. "Fuck me, Kazuto," I panted in his ear before sucking the lobe. "Make me come again."

He began to gasp, "Rika," he said. "I'm going to…"

I wrapped my legs around his waist. "Me too, give me everything you've got, Kazuto."

When the world came back to me, I found him holding himself up above me, his eyes unfocused. My hands were clenching his shoulders, and I saw his HP gauge had dipped slightly. As he collapsed next to me, I saw several scratches along his back, each spaced the same distance as my fingertips. I leaned over and kissed them, then snuggled up against him, feeling light as a feather. I brushed some sweat soaked hair out of my face and grinned.

"That was great, Kazuto," I said, running a hand along my side and feeling my body as it cooled off. I also felt the union of our act leaking along my thigh, but at the moment, I didn't want to move, to lose this moment.

Kazuto rolled up onto his side and I worked backwards to spoon with him, his arm draped across my waist and reaching across to grip my opposite shoulder.

"Rika," he said sleepily.

"Hmm?"

"I can't reach the blanket."

"Forget it," I said, snuggling back some more and turning my head to kiss him.

"I have a feeling we may not get a lot of sleep tonight," I said naughtily.

End Part Four

 **I've had quite a few people asking me about Yui and ALO. Yui is upcoming, but ALO poses some interesting puzzles to solve, namely how they got out of SAO and why Lis is entering ALO at all. I'll have to think on this for a while.**


	5. Maiden Amid the Leaves

**Ok, here's something people have been waiting for. Now, I don't do much outside of her introduction, but I have some interesting ideas on how to advance her in this new history. I also finally decided the final few paragraphs for this story,** **which if I do an ALO arc it'd have to be as a second story.**

 **Link Start!**

* * *

When I woke up, the sun was already shining in through the window, and my game time showed it was just after noon. I went to sit up and found myself held tight by a slim arm. I snuggled up against Kirito's body for a moment before nudging him with my shoulder.

"Morning," he said groggily.

"Try afternoon, silly," I said, tapping his arm. "Let me up so I can get dressed and get us something to eat."

"I'd rather not," he said, nuzzling the back of my neck, making my skin tingle.

"Come on," I said twisting away from him slightly. "We can't stay in bed all the time."

"We could."

"Be nice," I replied. "Let me up and I'll make you those sandwiches Asuna showed me."

"If I have to," Kirito said, releasing me and rolling onto his back.

I slipped out from under the blanket and swiped through my menu to my clothing inventory and equipped a light blue dress. As the clothing appeared I also got a notification that the ethics code was enabled. I swished around to grin at my husband and fairly skipped my way down to the kitchen.

The memories from last night made me feel as though I was floating, despite a mild soreness. I gathered up the ingredients and put together a light lunch of sandwiches and pickled radishes.

He attacked the sandwiches with gusto, and I marveled that he could handle the sheer amount of spiciness that the recipe called for, I couldn't. One bite and my mouth felt like I had put an ingot from my forge in it. He just popped bites like they were nothing.

"So, besides eating my cooking and trying to coerce me back into bed, did you have any plans for today?" I asked, wiping my mouth on a napkin.

"I thought we'd go down to the lake and see if it's any good for swimming, or fishing. Or something." He stretched. "I mean, this is our home now, might as well see what came with the yard."

"I didn't pack a swimsuit, Kirito," I said.

"Neither did I," he replied, with a smirk.

A flush raced up my neck. "Pervert," I said, smiling.

"No, today's just exploring. Nothing else." He equipped a pair of boots and held his hand out.

* * *

As we walked down the path, I got a sudden sense that someone was watching us.

"Do you feel that?" I asked.

""Yeah," he answered, scanning the area.

A flash of white flitted by my peripheral vision. "There!" I said, tapping his arm.

As we watched, a flicker of white blew out from behind a tree trunk. Followed by the collapsing figure of a young girl.

"No," Kirito whispered, rushing forward. I was only a step behind him.

We found her sprawled out in the loam, barely breathing. "Is she ok?" I asked.

"Yeah, but there's something weird about her," he said, staring. I activated my scan skill and saw it immediately.

"She has no cursor or HP gauge," I said, rotating around to see if it was obscured by her position so close to the ground. "Some kind of bug?"

"I don't know," Kirito picked her up and stood. "But she's freezing and even with the spring temperature I wouldn't leave her be."

"You're right. We should keep an eye on her until she wakes up." I looked at her again. "She's so young, what's a girl her age doing in SAO?"

"I couldn't tell you, but she might have family looking for her." He leaned against the doorjamb as I opened the door.

Neither of us wanted to consider the possibility that she was alone in the game.

* * *

Nightfall came and the girl still hadn't woken up. I lay nestled against Kirito's chest, thinking about why the girl would have been out there in the woods.

"Col for your thoughts?" Kirito asked.

"I can't figure out why she would have been out there. No weapons, no armor, she couldn't have been questing."

"She's not an NPC, our quest logs didn't update and she didn't try to keep us from moving her." He shifted and put both arms around me. "Lets get some sleep, and we'll check Coral in the morning if she hasn't woken up yet."

I nodded and closed my eyes, my sense of comfort at being in his arms was sadly lessened by my sense of worry for a girl who I hadn't even known existed mere hours before.

* * *

Warm sunlight woke me up the next morning, and I slid from Kirito's arms and tiptoed down the hall to the second bedroom to check on the girl. I walked in just in time to see her sit up and blink sleepily.

"Kirito, come quick!" I shouted, rushing to the girl's bedside. She looked at me with a confused look on her sleepy face. "Hey, you feel better?"

"Mmhm," she said, rubbing her eyes with tiny fists.

"Do you remember what you were doing in the forest? Where your family is?"

"Uh-uh."

I felt Kirito come up behind me and put a hand on my shoulder. "What's your name?" he asked, leaping straight to a question I should have asked first.

"I think…my name is…Y-Yui," she said, her voice getting stronger as she talked.

"Hi Yui, I'm Kirito, and this is Lisbeth. And you feeling better today?"

She nodded, her long black hair sliding over her shoulder. "Ki-to? Lisabeth?"

He grinned as he sat down next to me. "That's pretty close. But my name is Kirito, Ki-ree-to."

She tried again, with the same results. I hid a smile behind my hand as he shook his head. "Ok, maybe that is a bit tough. How bout you call me whatever is easier?"

"Ok," she screwed her face up for a moment, then perked up. "Daddy."

The look on his face was priceless, and I almost lost my composure. Then Yui pointed at me. "Lisabeth is Mommy."

I blinked as my laughter died. What? I saw Kirito look at me from behind the girl; he gave a slight nod. I looked at Yui and the forlorn look on her face told me everything I needed to overcome my worry and made me smile.

"Ok, I'm Mommy. I'm good with that."

She leapt into my arms, smiling and giggling. I held her and felt a sudden sense of peace. I gave her a hug and leaned down to see her face. "You must be hungry, so how about some breakfast?"

She agreed, and I saw Kirito's eyes light up too. Apparently I'm a better cook than I realized.

I was making a plate of honeycakes for Yui when I heard Kirito say "I don't know, Yui, this is pretty spicy."

I glanced into the living room just in time for Yui to take a bite of the sandwich, and chew on it thoughtfully before declaring that she liked it, a spot of sauce on her face.

"Wow, you've got an iron stomach, kiddo," he said. I smiled and brought out the rest of breakfast, enjoying the sense of normality I haven't had since the game started. A sense of family.

* * *

Later, Yui napping in a chair, Kirito and I sat down to discuss what to do.

"She's a blank slate," he said, running his hand through his hair. "No gear beyond her clothes, no memory. I don't know what's going on."

"It's almost like she's a baby again. I don't know what to do." Rebellious tears welled up in my eyes.

"You want to take care of her, until her memories come back, don't you?"

"Yeah, I do. It's the right thing to do."

"But that's the thing, we should be helping find her family too, and I can't stay away from the front lines for too long, otherwise it will take that much longer to clear the game and get her back to her family." He looked at the girls face.

"I know," I said, frowning. He came and put his arm around me.

"You don't want to say goodbye, do you?"

I shook my head, fighting against the tears. I was stronger than this.

"Neither do I."

I looked up at him in surprise. He was gazing fondly at her, and he pulled me closer.

"I don't know why, and I know it's only been a few hours that we've known her, but she's made this place feel like a home."

He squeezed me for a moment. I turned to him and kissed him. "You are a rare person, Kazuto Kirigaya," I whispered. I leaned my head against his chest and closed my eyes.

"We should go to the Town of Beginnings when she wakes up, see if anything looks familiar to her." he said, rubbing my back.

I shook my head, sitting up. "That towns such a huge place we'd never be sure we covered everyplace. Plus its Army territory and they've been getting restless." I turned and leaned back into him. "And we just got here, and I don't want to loose a moment with you, even if it's to help Yui."

"Then what do we do?" His arms enclosed my, holding me close.

"I'll call Argo in the morning. If there's anything to find, she will ferret it out."

"For how much, though?" Kirito murmured.

I elbowed him in the rib. "You know that for you and me she doesn't charge. We keep the secret that she was a Beta tester and she helps us out as long as we don't make too outrageous of a request."

He murmured his assent.

Yui murmured in her sleep, a smile on her face.

"Our own daughter," I said, smiling.

* * *

The next day, I took Yui to Coral and got a handful of changes of clothing for her and picked up some things for dinner. She was so excited that I couldn't help but smile. I caught myself a few times calling out the same things I heard my mom would tell me whenever we went out.

That night, after Yui went to bed, Kirito and I were looking at her from the doorway of her room, basking in the warmth of happiness.

"Never thought I'd be a mother," I said, sliding an arm around his waist as we headed for our room.

"But now, I can't imagine it any other way."

We were in bed before he spoke up. "Rika,"

"Hmm?"

"When we get out, would you want a family?"

"Only if it's with you, Kazuto. If we get out, I want to find you and go on dates, see what its like in the real world." I eyed him in the darkness.

"Keep your promise, Kazuto," I said. "For us, and for Yui."

End of Part Five


	6. Tea Time, Amid Future's Promise

**So, the timeline is starting to deviate quite a bit as things draw to a 'close' as far as the Aincrad arc goes. I was planning on only five parts, but bringing Yui in gave me ample space for deviation. And there is a little sneak peak at what the final chapter of this particular story.**

 **This takes place about three week after the last installment.**

 **Link Start!**

* * *

"Lis! This is so awesome!" Sillica shouted as she rushed to the railing on the back porch. "I can't believe you and Kirito found such a great place!"

I smiled as I set the tea tray down on the table. "I know, he surprised me too. But I like it, and with a corridor crystal to get to work, I don't have to worry about getting up super early." I poured us each a cup of tea and sat down, smoothing my skirt out.

"Come on, Yui, you've almost got it," I heard Kirito say and glanced over as Yui tossed a ball through a ring suspended from one of the trees. She clipped the edge of the ring, causing it to start rotating but the ball rolled through, coming to a stop just before Kirito's feet. He picked it up as the girl started excitedly bouncing up and down, giggling.

I smiled as I watched the two play their own version of catch. I saw Pina fly over and settle on the ring, calling out before going to land on Kirito's head and curl up. He laughed and reached up to pet the tiny dragon.

Sillica giggled. "Ever since he helped me get Pina back, she's been overly fond of him. I only know her to behave like that with a few people." She sipped her tea, then turned to me. "So, what's it like?"

"Hmm?"

"Being a mom, having such a great little girl! She's soooo cute!"

My smile grew as I leaned back with my cup and saucer. "It's still kinda new to me, but so far it's been an amazing experience. Strangely enough, she seems so much like us, even though we're not really her parents." I took a sip before continuing. "She's impulsive and headstrong just like Kirito, but she has my temper and will. It's weird, but now I can't see life without her." I looked out of the corner of my eye at the young beast tamer. "Or her Auntie Sillica, for that matter."

The girl blushed. "Don't tease, Lis. It's not nice."

I turned to her. "I'm not teasing, Sillica. Kirito and I have been talking the last couple of days while we wait on Argo to find out if Yui has family in the game. If something were to happen to us, we want you and Asuna to see after Yui."

She looked at me for a moment, dumbstruck. "But, what do you mean?"

I sat my saucer down, turning to her. "Eventually, Kirito has to return to the front lines, and I am going to try and join him eventually." I glanced down. "Do you remember, not long after the game started, how a lot of us went offline for a few hours?"

She nodded, not sure of where I was going.

"I figure that we were being moved to hospitals in that time, the built in battery of the NerveGear keeping us alive. And that's where we are, hooked up to machines to keep us alive."

"Ok, but what's that got to do with anything?"

I looked her in the eyes. "I used to love studying biology in school. I actually wanted to be a nurse, before the game. I know that after two years of muscle atrophy and living on stored fat and feeding tubes, the human body doesn't have a long shelf life. We're all living on borrowed time, and the sooner we're out the better."

I looked over at my family, now playing fetch with Pina. "I don't want Yui to be alone again, and if anything happened to Kirito I wouldn't have a reason to live beyond her. I've already talked to Asuna and she agreed, and I want you to help since she's on the clearing team too." A few tears leaked from my eyes and slid down my face before I could catch them. I wiped my eyes and looked at her.

She reached out and took my hand, a few tears glimmering in her eyes as well. "Of course, Lisbeth. Nothing's going to happen, but if it does she'll be safe." She wiped her eyes and laughed. "Of course, Kirito wouldn't let anything happen to you. He promised to protect you, after all!"

I smiled and nodded.

"Mommy, do you and Aunt Sillica want to play too?"

I looked down at my daughter, a few leaves sticking out from her dark hair and sweater. I shook my head and picked a few off. "I swear, Yui, you are a mess. You go along and we'll catch up."

"Ok!" she turned and skipped off.

"She's adorable, Lisbeth." Sillica said, standing. "Oh! I almost forgot!" She went inside and returned with a small box wrapped in blue paper. "I know it's not much, but I wanted to get you something for you two. Happy Housewarming!" She grinned and held it out.

"Sillica, that's sweet," I said taking the box and opening it. Inside was a set of five glass globes, each with tiny pink roses. "These are beautiful!"

"I wanted for you to have them weeks ago, but I had trouble finding a set of five with the same flowers in them." She looked down and tapped her fingers nervously. "Sorry it's late."

I laughed and hugged her. "It's ok, Sillica. We did get married and moved rather quickly."

With a flutter of wings, Pina landed on the table and curled up, giving a contented yawn before folding her head under her wing. I reached over and scritched her behind her ear, electing a cat-like purr from the fairy dragon.

"But then, it seems like everything that involves Kirito moves quick." I blushed as a memory from the other night flashed through my head. "Mostly."

Sillica leaned back, picking up her tea and finishing it off. "Well, I'm going to go join the game," she said, jumping off the porch and running over to where father and daughter were standing. They started a kickball game, helping Yui learn to aim her kicks better.

I stood and cleared the table, setting the tea tray and Sillica's gift on the countertop and was about to head out to join when I got a PM from Argo.

 _Lii-chan,_

 _Found some information on Yui, will be by this evening. Only tell Kiri-bou._

I felt my heart ache. Did she find Yui's real family? Were they looking for her too? No, if that were the case she would have said so. Argo wasn't in the business of being cryptic, she was in the business of information. She must have something she wanted to relay in person.

* * *

Kirito came back downstairs. "She's passed out. Barely made it into bed with as tired as she was." He sat down next to me. "How long until Argo gets here?" he asked.

"Not long," said the voice from the doorway. I jumped, seeing Argo appear in the doorway. That woman had too high a stealth skill.

"Argo," I said, standing. "I thought I told you not to sneak in."

"That was your shop, Lii-chan," she said, flopping onto one of the other couches and dropping her hood. "You never said that for the house."

"Consider it said. At least knock."

She looked at me with a sly smirk. "I'll try to remember."

Kirito leaned forward. "What did you find?"

The smirk vanished from her face as she settled into business. "First off, there are no families searching for a missing child that matches Yui's description."

My heart beat with relief, followed almost immediately by guilt. "Were they…"

She shook her head. "I managed to track down almost every player that logged in on launch day, both in game and on the memorials. I did find, however, that there is also no record of a player with Yui's description, nor is there any record of a Yui name being registered with the access I have."

I was confused. Next to Argo, only a GM could have more access to information. But that means that Yui shouldn't exist at all.

"So as near as you can determine, Yui's alone but for us, is that it?" Kirito asked.

The info broker nodded. "I haven't been able to check in with the clearing team, but I exhausted every other lead. That's why it took me three weeks to get back to you." She scratched the back of her head, frowning. "For all intents and purposes, she shouldn't exist, but she does. I'm sure it'll be interesting when the truth comes out."

I sat there, happiness, guilt, confusion, and curiosity battling each other for dominance in my mind.

* * *

Later that night, I lay in bed, staring at the ceiling. Kirito rolled over and looked at me. "Everything ok?" he asked.

"I'm so confused," I said, covering my face with my hands so he couldn't see the tears that I'd been fighting all night. "I mean, I'm glad that she's safe and can be ours, but I felt guilty for being so selfish." I rolled over and buried my face into his chest. His warm arms held me close.

"When I heard there weren't any families searching for her, I was happy, but then I felt like I was being callous in case there had been a family that had died and left her alone." I could feel tears staining his shirt and a sob racked my body. "I love her, Kirito, and I want her to stay, but…"

"Lis, Yui is our daughter. It's ok to care about her, and honestly, I felt the same. But when you think about it, that's natural."

I looked up at him and saw him staring at the ceiling. "Kirito…"

"It's like how you felt when you thought Asuna and I were an item. You wanted to be happy for your friend even though you loved me too. Your heart was being pulled in two directions and that made you feel guilty, even for a few days after we started dating. Despite your temper, you have a huge, loving heart."

I smacked his shoulder before hugging him. "How is it you know how to make me feel better?"

"Just lucky I guess," he said, stroking my hair. "But then, you've done the same for me a few times."

I smiled, and then sat up to kiss him. "You are probably the best thing I've gotten from a dungeon, Kirito." I brushed my hand across his cheek afterwards. "I love you so much."

He brushed a thumb across my cheek to wipe away the last vestige of my tears.

"Whatever the answer, she'll always be our daughter."

* * *

 _I was sitting in my living room, looking around confused. I recognized everything from the real world, the tv, the porch, and faded wallpaper in my parents' kitchen. Something nagged at the back of my mind. When did I get back? Was SAO just a dream?_

 _I was about to worry when I heard a voice call out "Mom! I've finished my homework!"_

 _I turned to see a young lady, maybe thirteen, trot into the room, her brown hair pulled back into a trio of braids. She sat down next to me and gave me a hug. "Yui promised to go with me to the movies after I got done. You want to come?"_

 _I smiled and hugged her back, looking into eyes that were identical to mine. "No, you two go have fun. Your big sister and father have been working hard and if she wants to spend time with you, take advantage of it."_

 _She kissed me on the cheek and went to go grab her coat. Kazuto and Yui came downstairs, our oldest looking so much like a combination of her father and I, her hair wrapped into a bun and purse over her shoulder. "Ready, Sachi?" she asked, giving both her father and I a peck on the cheek._

 _I smiled as the two girls left, waving._

I woke up, still in bed with Kirito. He was fast asleep and the sun was beginning to peak over the horizon.

I nestled my head back into his shoulder, smiling.

If that was a vision of the future, then it was something I wanted to see.

End Part Six


	7. The Eve of the End, Amid Truth

**This one and one more to go, sadly. I'm going to miss this reality. Not that I'll never write in it again, but NaNoWriMo has started and I want to focus on my novel for a bit. During my breaks I'll venture into ALO and Mothers' Rosario, and do some original strings. Requests are open ^.^**

 **Link Start!**

* * *

"The team's cleared floor 74," Kirito said as he read the bulletin. He leaned back and frowned. "They didn't have any deaths, but it came close."

I looked over at him as I piled up several blacksmithing schematics on the table in front of me. "You want to head back soon, don't you?" I said, knowing the answer.

He nodded. "Yeah, I've been stretching my leave of absence kinda thin. Commander Heathcliff messaged me again last night. He says they could use another pair of swords in the lineup" He eyed me. "And a mace user."

I smiled wanfully. Through the two months we had moved out to this cabin we had been scouting lower level dungeons twice a week, timing the trips to between floor clear raids so Asuna could spend watch Yui with Sillica. With Kirito just watching my back, I had managed to hit level 79, maxed out my mace skill and was working my way up with a buckler. I brought up my menu and skimmed through my skills, seeing that my shield level was at 475, almost fifty percent. I sighed. I wouldn't be able to stand with the shield users effectively, but I could defend Kirito and myself if we were on the dps squad.

I looked at him. "I know I'm not quite to the level that the Assualt Team prefers for players to join on boss raids, but I'm not willing to let you go alone. I can watch your back."

He smiled and nodded. "It says here that they aren't going to even start mapping the next floor for a month or two. You'll likely have some business coming your way, in the near future. And we can work on your shield skill and maybe build up another weapon skill if you want."

I shrugged, then scooted over as Yui skipped into the room and hopped up onto the sofa with me.

"I'm fine with maces, Kirito." I waved my hand at the papers in front of me. "I got some good upgrade schemas here and that drop on our last outing is better than anything I can reliably smith."

"Mommy, can I go to work with you today?" Yui asked, looking at the blueprints on the table.

"Sure, honey, but remember to stay out of Mommy's way, ok?"

She smiled and hugged me and went to go change out of her nightgown.

Kirito looked at me. "She still your little good luck charm?" he asked.

I nodded, puzzled. "I don't understand it, but whenever Yui goes to work with me my RNG results are almost always on the upper end. I've never smithed a standard or fine weapon for a while. It's also good for her to spend time with me." I smiled. "It's fun. And your job is too dangerous for her to go with you."

"Hey, I think she's got the makings of a fine swordswoman in her," he said. "She even carries that short sword you smithed for her, practicing sword skills with both of us."

She nodded, then a thought crossed my mind. "Kirito, have you noticed anything different about Yui lately?" I asked.

He frowned. "Not overly, no. Beyond the obvious, of course."

"How old would you say she is?"

"I don't know, maybe seven?"

"What color was her hair when we found her?"

He frowned. "Black. What's the issue?"

I looked at him. "Her hair is a dark brown now. And her eyes have changed to a sort of pink, like mine are."

He came over and hugged me. "I think you're just noticing things that your eye missed the first time. After all, she wasn't exactly clean when we found her, so her hair being washed helps. And she's been outside playing a lot, which can lighten hair." He pecked me on the cheek as I hear Yui's boots on the stairs. "Don't keep her waiting and don't worry."

* * *

I put the hammer I just smithed on the table next to my anvil, wiping my brow and checked the next item on my list; a one handed longsword. I got ready to pull an ingot of metal out of the forge when Yui chirped up.

"Not that one, Mommy," she said, feet swinging from her stool as she read a book. "Use the Mithral ore."

I frowned, then thought about it. Mithral did have a higher change to make a Rare grade sword, and it was only surpassed in that by Crystallite and Adamantine. "Yui, how did you know what I was going to use?"

The girl looked up, confused. "I saw what you were reaching for," she said. "The stats of the steel ingot you had wouldn't have the durability you need for the sword design. It's far to low." She went back to her book, humming happily.

I stared, slack jawed. There wasn't any way for her to have seen which ingot I was reaching for from where she sat, let alone what I was going to forge. I reached over and selected a sword at random from my rack and pulled up its window to skim it's stats.

"Yui, how good is this sword?" I asked, just holding the sword up. She glanced over then back at her book.

"It's a Rare quality one handed longsword, current durability 300/750, short range slashing with a damage range of 150 to 300, requiring level 20 to equip, plus thirty to strength and agility."

I was shocked. i picked up an axe, but she started naming it's stats before I even pulled up its window.

I messaged Kirito and just watched as my daughter continued humming, oblivious to the impossibility of what she had done.

"Yui, how can you know the stats, you don't have an appraise skill high enough for some of these."

She looked over at me, smiling. "I can see the data stream, Mommy." She brushed a lock of hair over her ear. "It shows me what it is."

See the data stream?

* * *

Later that night, Kirito and I tested Yui on several things, and determined that anything we put in front of her she could rattle off the stats of, including us.

"Yui, go get ready for bed, sweetie," Kirito said, ushering the girl off. She scampered up the stairs and he turned his gaze back to me.

"This isn't a unique skill like my dual wielding or your tremor strike," he said. "She's not scanning us, she's seeing the raw data."

"That what I thought, but what does that mean?"

"I'm not sure. It has to be related to why she doen't have an icon or health bar." He frowned. "In some games, GMs don't have visible stats. It keeps some players from challenging them."

"But she's not a GM, Kirito. She's just a child."

"You're both right, Mommy, Daddy."

We turned to see Yui standing at the bottom of the stairs, her nightgown and robe belted on. Her eyes looked older and a cross between the colors of my and Kirito's. Her hair was definitely different now, now a medium brown from the darker shade from this morning.

"I remember it all now," she said, walking forward. "Where I came from, who I am, and why I couldn't remember."

She looked me in the eye and smiled. "Mental Health Counseling program, version 1." She looked at Kirito. "Codename: Yui."

And my world was turned on its end.

"When did you remember, Yui?" asked Kirito.

"Just now," she said, looking at her feet. "Accessing the data streams so much cleared away part of the data blockage."

She explained it all so calmly, so point of fact that I had no reason to believe she was making it up.

The Cardinal program, how she was supposed to help grieving players but was blocked, how the errors started building up, and how she was drawn to two players in particular.

"So I started a program dump, to clear my errors and disengage from Cardinal," she said, tears starting to well up in her eyes. "But I didn't see how it would block my access and dump me into the environment. All I can do now is see the data streams, or nudge your RNG scores. I didn't even know what I was doing at first, or that I was even doing it at all."

She rushed over and hugged me, tears bursting from her eyes. "I'm so sorry, Mommy."

I held her to me, a few tears sliding free as well. "For what, sweetie?"

"For not knowing, for not remembering." she sobbed. "All I want to do is stay with you and Daddy."

"Why won't you, Yui?" asked Kirito as he enveloped us both in his strong arms.

"You're our daughter, no matter what."

"But what happens when you clear the game?" she asked. "What will happen to me?"

"You can manipulate data, yeah? That means part of your program probably still has admin privileges. I doubt you can log everyone out," he said, looking at the girl as she shook her head. "But you can still manipulate your program. That much is obvious."

"How can you tell?" she asked.

He pulled out a message cube and hit the button, showing a picture we had taken after the New Year festival, Yui on Kirito's shoulders and me with my arms around his chest.

"Your mom asked me a few questions this morning and it got me thinking. I went and found this." He ruffled her hair.

"Your hair and eye color have changed, merging the colors that Mommy and I have, making you look more like us." he said. "Even the shape of your face has changed a little, and you're older now, thought only a few months has passed."

I saw the connection. "You've been subconsciously conforming to your role," I breathed. "As you hid from Cardinal, you were truly becoming our daughter."

She looked at Kirito, tears starting to dry up. "Why?" she asked.

He looked at her and grinned. "If you can manipulate your program, you can also adjust where it is saved, right?"

She nodded.

Then create a shared file in the local memory of our NerveGears. That way, even after the game is cleared, we can still be a family." he knelt to eye level with the girl. "And I'll find a way for you to join us, so we can be a real family again."

I thought she was going to choke him with how hard she hugged him. Then she drew back.

"But how will you beat the game?" she asked. "Kayaba is the last boss."

I stared at her. "Kayaba?" I said, dumbfounded.

She nodded. "But he's not going by that name right now."

Kirito nodded. "I know, Yui."

I stared at him. "What?"

He kissed me as he stood. "It makes sense now. Nothing is a boring as watching someone else play an RPG."

"He's one of the players," I realized. "Do you know who?"

"I have an idea," he said. "But no proof. I'm heading to Grandzam tomorrow. I don't want you to follow me."

I pushed myself right into his face. "Don't you think about it, Kirito. I'm not letting you go and confront Kayaba by yourself."

"I'm going, too, Daddy."

I looked down at Yui. "No, honey, we'll have Sillica watch you…"

"NO!" she cried. "If you're going to fight Kayaba, you need me there to nudge your RNG damage procs up. He's going to have Cardinal boosting his stats beyond normal."

"She has a point, Lis," he said. "But I want you both to stay back and out of the way."

"We'll see, Kirito."

"Well then," he said. "We'd better get some sleep. I'm going to end the game tomorrow. Yui, go ahead and upload yourself into our NerveGears tonight."

* * *

Later that night, I rolled over and looked Kirito in the eyes. "Don't you break your promise tomorrow, Kazuto." I said, holding him tightly.

"I don't plan to," he said, hugging me. "I'm tired of breaking promises."

"I'm terrified that I'm going to lose you." I said. "Akihiko Kayaba won't play fair. Not after trapping so many of us in here."

He shifted onto his side, looking me in the eyes. "I'm yours, Rika," he said. "Now and ever. And when we get out, I promise you we'll be together. We'll find a way to bring Yui into the world and be a family together there too."

I smiled, and kissed him hard. "I'm going to hold you to that," I said, cupping his face before laying down.

 **To Be Concluded**


	8. Amid Victory, It All Comes Down to This

**This is it, the final chapter of my version of SAO. I'm avoiding talking about Fairy Dance and subsequent adventures purposely so I can give them each their own stories. There is also some flashbacks in here to show where I plan on doing one-shots after NaNoWriMo concludes. Fear not, for I will return.**

 **Link Start!**

* * *

 _"_ _You can't be serious!" I said, looking across the table at him one morning. "How'd he even find out about it?"_

 _Kirito shrugged. "I don't know," he said. "I mean, it wasn't that much of a secret once we started clearing smaller groups with Asuna and Fuurinkazan. Heathcliff could have heard it anywhere. I trust Klein, but some of his group aren't that quiet during celebrations."_

 _I frowned. "I don't like it. The Commander of the Knights of the Blood Oath asks you to come down for a duel? Even if it is for a celebration, and a show of skills among the clearing teams, something is up."_

 _He came over and gave me a squeeze. "It's just a silly duel. What's the worst that could happen?"_

* * *

I woke up, alone in bed. Looking around, I saw Kirito standing on the balcony, staring out at the lake in the distance. I padded out and stood beside him, looking out too.

"I couldn't sleep," he said without preamble. "So many possibilities."

I hugged him. "It's going to be ok, Kazuto. We'll be with you all the way."

He kissed the crown of my head. "I know, but," he looked out at the lake again. "I just get the feeling that I'll never see this place again.

I just held him tighter.

* * *

 _"_ _No way!" I said as Heathcliff managed to block Kirito's Starburst Stream. "That's impossible."_

 _Asuna blinked in surprise. "I knew that the Commander's Divine Blade was strong, but I was sure Kirito could have beaten it."_

 _Kirito stood back up from the riposte that he had been hit with and sheathed his swords, a frown passing over his face for a moment before he shrugged and went to shake Heathcliff's hand._

* * *

When we arrived in Grandzam, we saw Asuna and Klein at the gate plaza, having obviously teleported in shortly before.

"What's up, Kirito?" Klein asked. The samurai was a pleasant enough sort, but he struck me as a bit perverted and desperate at times, but he was a solid ally.

"Klein, what are you doing here?" I asked.

"A little birdie sent me a PM last night saying to be here today." he said. "It's hard for me to pass up the request of a little cutie." He said, reaching down to ruffle Yui's hair.

"Same here," said Asuna, smiling.

"But why did Yui…" I was cut off by the sound of the teleport gate activating again, revealing Agil and Argo. They stepped down, clad in their best armor and weapons. I was surprised since Argo never geared up for anything. Questions were stalled when the gate activated one last time, revealing Sillica and Pina.

Kirito looked down at our daughter. "Yui," he said with a stern tone. "I thought I told you I'd do this myself."

Yui looked down and twisted the cuff of her sleeve in her hands. "I know, Daddy," she said bashfully. "But I was scared for you. Besides, if Cardinal helps him, even a two on one attack my not be enough." She wrapped her arms around his waist, hugging him. She had definitely grown, her head now just below his shoulders. I reached out and cupped his face, smiling.

"You're outvoted, Kirito."

He grinned, a cold, predatory smile that chilled me to the bone. "Then it looks like today is when we get to go home," he said, turning towards the headquarters of the Knights of the Blood Oath, his Blackwyrm coat flowing out behind him.

* * *

 _"_ _Happy birthday, Daddy!" Yui said as I went and put the cake on the table._

 _"_ _Well, this is a surprise," Kirito said, sitting up. "I haven't had a birthday cake since the game started."_

 _I brushed my bangs out of my face as Yui hopped onto the sofa next to him. "Neither have I," I said, sitting down. "But since mine is later this week, why not celebrate both?"_

 _"_ _I helped Mommy make the cake!" Yui piped. "Well, I helped put the icing on."_

 _"_ _And she was a big help, too," I said reaching over to lightly pat her knee._

 _"_ _Well, no sense in letting it go to waste then," Kirito said. "Dig in!"_

* * *

The doors to the council chamber boomed open, revealing Heathcliff meeting with his top advisors. Several maps lay on the table, along with handwritten notes. They looked over as we marched in, arrayed in a triangle shape, Kirito at the leading point, Asusna and I at either side, Klein and Agil behind each of us, and Sillica, Yui, and Argo at the very back.

"Commander," Asuna said. "We've come with important news regarding the mission of the guild."

Heathcliff stood up. "Oh? Please, make your report."

"Kirito and Lisbeth have discovered a shortcut to the final clearing of the game."

He looked at us, an eyebrow raising. "You have?"

Kirito stepped forward. "Yes. I have reason to believe that Akihiko Kayaba has been with us this entire time, posing as a player. I also believe he is the final boss of the game."

"Do you have a glimmer of who the player is?"

"Yes." I said, pointing. "You."

Heathcliff smiled, looking down.

"That's ridiculous," he said. "Why would I…"

He never got the chance to finish his words as Kirito rushed him, his sword streaking out only to be stopped mere inches from Heathcliff's skull. a blue warning icon flashed up, announcing that the target was an immortal object.

Kirito stepped back, rejoining our formation.

Heathcliff sighed. "If only for my own curiosity, how did you figure it out?"

Kirito drew his other sword. "Our Duel. I know my damage ranges, and I know my hit percentages after two years. You avoided too many hit, took too little damage. And that last block was faster than anything I could think of."

Asuna spoke up next. "Add that to the fact that no matter how hard the fight, you never dip into the yellow zone during a boss raid. Even your Divine Blade shouldn't protect you that much."

Heathcliff smiled. "I suppose I did overplay my hand then." He looked up, and smiled. "I am Akihiko Kayaba."

The aides behind him gasped in shock.

"And I am the final boss of the game. I had intended to face you at the top in the Ruby Palace, but I suppose this just as good as there."

Kirito leveled his blades, tensing.

Heathcliff equipped his armor and shield, and after a few other button presses an icon appeared above his head announcing that he had been changed to a mortal object. Then, a shock passed through me and I fell to the ground, a paralysis icon appearing at the end of my HP Gauge. From the way I fell, I could see that everyone but Kirito had fallen too.

"I'll give you a chance to replay our duel, Kirito," Heathcliff said. "Dual wielding is a very rare skill, given only to the person with the fastest reaction time. It was intended to be the ability that lets you be the hero that takes down the villain." he drew his sword. "Do you agree?"

Kirito shuffled his feet, setting himself to rush forward. "One condition," he said.

Heathcliff cocked his head.

"If I loose, don't retaliate against any of those here. Let them live."

Heathcliff smiled and nodded.

"Kirito, no, don't!" I said, struggling against the paralysis effect.

"Kirito, don't be a fool!" Klein shouted.

But the look on my husbands face showed that nothing would sway him. He was going to make good on his promise or die trying.

He shot forward, attacking. I watched in awe as the two began to move faster than my I eyes could follow. I heard a few sobs and saw Asuna and Sillica crying. I felt tears on my own cheeks.

Then I saw a small form shift, and Yui sat up. She had a look of concentration on her face. I glanced back at the fight and I saw that they were both into the yellow, with Heathcliff's HP dipping just as fast as Kirito's. They also both had jumps as their battle healing took affect, but each of Heathcliff's healed more than Kirito.

Memories began to flash through my mind, Kirito holding my hand in the dragon's den.

Holding me close at nights.

Him and Yui playing in our yard.

The party for our birthdays, all of our shared laughter.

The feeling of his hands and his lips.

"Now, Yui," I whispered.

She grinned and pulled up a menu. A few presses later and we were all on our feet, weapons equipped and rushing Heathcliff.

I charged _Titan's Fist_ and slammed Asgarde, my highest rated mace, into the floor, sending a shockwave that tripped Heathcliff up. It may have foiled Kirito's attack, but it also slowed Heathcliff's riposte.

Klein and Agil were into the fray first, katana and axe flashing out. Heathcliff blocked off the attacks, but he was hard pressed. Then, as Asuna barreled in, rapier flashing. She landed four out of five hits, staggering him.

I leaped up and charged in, Sillica meeting up with me as we attacked. Yui stayed back with Argo. Argo's special skill _Observe_ helped her coordinate the best times to boost RNG damages.

This was the plan that Yui had communicated to us on the way to the fight. We knew that Kayaba wasn't going to fight entirely fair, and we had him out gunned. His HP was dipping lower with every second.

"Starburst STREAM!" I heard Kirito shout, and the two swords flared as he began his strongest attack.

We all shifted, giving Kirito room to drive Heathcliff back. For each attack of Kirito's he blocked, one of us would land one. My special skill, _Tremor Strike,_ gave me a 30% stun chance, and with Yui bumping our procs, half of my strikes triggered it. Agil cleaved through Heathcliff's back armor plate and Klein stabbed in just under his gorget.

Kirito's hit combo ended and he would up standing beside me, glanced over, and we both charged in, weapons charging up as we went once more into the breach.

 _Shield Break_ knocked his shield out of the way, and Elucidator stabbed into the arm, separating it. Dark Repulser took him across the chest, followed up with my _Thunder Smite_ from Asgarde blew him from his feet. His HP hit red, dipping even lower.

Kirito leapt, reversing his grips and plunged straight down, pinning Heathcliff to the ground.

Heathcliff smiled as his HP gauge zeroed and disappeared. "Well done," he whispered before bursting into pixels.

After a few moments, a trumpeting alert sounded and a cheery woman's voice spoke.

"Attention, on November 7th at 2:55 Pm, the game has been cleared. Repeat, the game has been cleared."

I smiled and rushed over to Kirito, kissing him as a timer appeared in my UI, counting down from three minutes.

Yui jumped into our arms, and we held onto each other and looked at our party.

"Well," Kirito said. "See you all on the other side."

Klein gave a thumbs up as Agil crossed his arms. "Dicey Cafe," he said. "That's where we meet as soon as we can." the giant man rumbled.

Asuna smiled and hugged us all. "Good job, guys." Tears were in her eyes.

Sillica was hugging Pina, a look of sorrow on her face. "Goodbye, Pina," she whispered.

The fairy dragon cooed once, nuzzling her face.

Yui looked over, then swiped a hand through and hit a few buttons. I couldn't read the icons, theye were in binary.

"I saved Pina's data to your NerveGear, Aunt Sillica," she said. "You don't have to be alone either."

Sillica cried, reaching over and hugging Yui.

The timer counted down to zero, and everything turned white in my vision.

* * *

The rehab took months just to get so we could move without crutches or wheelchairs, but through the years we all recovered far better than the doctors predicted. There was speculation that the NerveGears allowed just enough muscle activity to slow muscle atrophy.

I wasn't sure about that, since I wasn't as studied on neural interfaces. That was more Kirito's domain.

As soon as we were all recovered, we held a great party at the Dicey Cafe, Agils - no, Andrew's - restaurant in downtown Tokyo. Kazuto and I began to frequent the place during our official courtship and marriage. We spent our honeymoon in America, allowing Kazuto to set up contacts for his graduate studies and for me to take an internship with one of the world's top neural surgeons.

The years passed by, and soon we hit the six year mark, eight years past SAO.

* * *

I screamed, sweating as the pain ripped through me. Kazuto held my hand. "You're ok, Rika, you're ok."

I don't remember the next few minutes, but when lucidity came back, I was holding a tiny bundle and Kazuto was brushing my hair away from my face.

"Look, Rika," he said, reaching down to let a tiny hand curl around his finger. "Another daughter."

A nurse came into the room with a clipboard later, took some measurements and weighed the girl. She then looked at me and asked. "Have you decided on a name?"

I looked up at Kazuto, seeing him smile and nod.

"Sachi," I said, cradling our second child in my arms. "Sachi Kirigaya."

Kazuto kissed me on the forehead. "I'm going to go see how Yui's doing," he said. "She should be about done with her checkup now."

Kazuto had been essential in developing a series of bio-mechanical bodies, high tech prosthesis for amputees. He had used the research to construct a body for people that became paralyzed by accidents move again. Yui had volunteered to be the test subject, coming into the real world at last. Between my medical training and Kazuto and Yui's technical knowledge, the prototype operated perfectly.

I grabbed his hand, pulling him into kiss. "Tell her I love her and to come see her sister soon."

He nodded. As he left, Asuna and Keiko came in, bearing flowers and a stuffed dragon that bore a remarkable resemblance to Pina. Sachi cooed, stretching in my arms.

Everything was perfect.

Log Out.

* * *

 **Ok, so there you have it. My own take and redirection of SAO. I truly appreciate all of your reviews and I love the time I've spent as Lisbeth. I'll will for SURE return to my place behind her eyes for your enjoyment. I will be skimming this from time to time to fix typos and to remind myself of where I altered things subtly.**

 **Also, to help make my writing better, feel free to PM me for any concerns or suggestions.**

 **Ja Ne!**


	9. Bonus Chapter: Origins of the Name

**Ok, so this snippet grew during work today and I couldn't help but give you a slice of life post SAO. I also have been wondering what an appropriate theme would be for my AU, and decided on _Endless Story_ by Reira Ft Yuna Ito. It's got just something that felt right. The runner up was _Desire_ by Do As Infinity. Maybe I'll use one as an opener and the other as a closer...or let you all suggest something that fits even better! Nothing already associated with an existing anime please.**

 **Link Start...er, action!**

* * *

"Mommy, who's this?"

I looked over, seeing my youngest daughter, Sachi over at the memorial shrine we had set up in one corner of the living room. She had just turned five and was overly inquisitive, especially when it came to stories that Kazuto and I, her Aunts Suguha, Asuna, Shino and Keiko, and Uncles Ryoutarou and Andrew would tell of our adventures in the various virtual worlds. Even her older sister Yui had developed a habit of spinning great tales, though she tended to make Kazuto and I a little more impressive than it truly had been.

I walked over and looked into the shrine to see which picture she had indicated and a smiling face gazed back from a youthful young lady with straight black hair and sea-green eyes. I smiled as I looked at it, not knowing how to explain it when it was more Kazuto's memory than mine. The shrine contained screenshots of people that we felt deserved rememberance; Yuuki Konno, Diabel, my original guild mates that had died…

And of single member of the Moonlit Black Cats, and our daughter's namesake: Sachi.

"Well, little one," I said, lighting the incense and closing my eyes as I whispered a prayer. "That is a story that Daddy may be better telling you."

She glanced at the clock and saw that it was almost dinnertime, meaning that Kazuto would be emerging from his workshop soon. She helped me set up the table while I waited for the stew to finish cooking, Yui coming in to make the salad. The twelve year old was adjusting to life in the real world exceedingly well, her bio-synthetic body aging appropriately for a young girl. You'd never know the difference if you didn't know her personally.

Kazuto came in, hair damp from the shower he had grabbed post experiment time. He pecked Yui on the cheek as she passed by with the salad bowl, ruffled Sachi's hair and gave me a kiss before sitting down. We passed bowls around, distributing the stew and salad and were about to dig in before Sachi piped up with her question.

"Daddy, who's the girl in the shrine? The one that looks like Yui?"

He glanced at me, questioning. I smiled and mouthed "Sachi."

"Ah," he said, a wistful smile appearing on his face. "She was someone very special to me back when SAO had just started. A friend that I wish I could introduce you to."

Yui perked up as well, as she had known of Sachi but never the whole story.

Kaztuo began to tell the story of how he had come to become a part of the Moonlit Black Cats, the promise he had made to her to protect her, and how deeply her death had affected him.

"Matter of fact, if I hadn't have met your mom I might not be here today," he said, shooting me a wink. "Despite that night in the dragon den."

I gave him a mock glare and Yui giggled. She knew that story all too well.

"And when we found out you were coming," he continued. "Your mother and I were trying to decide on a name for you. We had just moved into this house and were unpacking and Sachi's picture kept winding up in our hands. We finally decided that she was trying to give us her blessing."

He got up and went over to her, giving her a big hug. "And I won't fail to protect you. Your mom and I, and Yui, we're all going to look out for each other."

Sachi had a few tears on her cheeks, a happy smile on her face. "What was she like, Daddy?"

"She was kind, without fault. She was kind of shy, almost timid, but considering the situation we were in, it almost made sense. She actually ran away once, and I found her hiding under a bridge crying." He stared off into memory, a flash of the pain flickering across his face, but it passed quickly. He had come to terms with her death and with the addition of Sachi in our life, he had moved on.

"I never knew her," I said. "But I met your father not long after she had passed away and it was still eating at him at times. "He was reckless and driven, probably because he thought he hadn't kept his promise. But if he hadn't come to me to smith a sword who knows if we would have made it out. If we would have found Yui, had you." I smiled fondly at Kazuto, a single tear slipping from my eye at the memories.

Sachi nodded, and I found her after dinner kneeling at the shrine, eyes closed and a stick of incense burning. Kazuto came up behind me and wrapped his arms around me, resting his head on my shoulder. I reached up and ran my fingers through his tousled hair.

"She is such a little angel," he whispered into my ear.

"I can't imagine life without her and Yui," I whispered back. "But there's something else to tell you."

"Hmm?"

I slid his hand a little lower on my abdomen to just below my navel. "We have to start coming up with names again."

His speechless expression was just as much fun as five years ago.

 **Logging out**

* * *

 _If you haven't changed your mind_

 _Soba ni ite hoshii yo tonight_

 _Tsuyogaru koto ni tsukareta no_

 _Osana sugita no everytime I think about you baby_

 _Ima nara ieru I miss you_

 _It's so hard to say I'm sorry_

 _Tatoeba dareka no tame jyanaku anata no tame ni_

 _Utaitai kono uta wo_

 _Owaranai story tsuzuku kono kagayaki ni_

 _Always tsutaetai zutto eien ni_

 _Memories of our time together_

 _Kesanaide kono mama don't go away_

 _Atataku toke dashite tashikameru no_

 _Yasashi sano shizuku kono mune ni hiro gatteku_

 _Setsunai hodo ni I'm missing you_

 _Kasaneta te hanasanai de_

 _Tatoeba kanau nara mou ichido anata no tame ni_

 _Utaitai kono uta wo_

 _Owaranai story taemanai itoshisa de_

 _Tell me why oshiete yo zutto eien ni_

 _Tatoeba dareka no tame jyanaku anata no tame ni_

 _Utaitai kono uta wo_

 _Owaranai story tsuzuku kono kagayaki ni_

 _Always tsutaetai zutto eien ni_

 _Tatoeba kanau nara mou ichido anata no tame ni_

 _Utaitai kono uta wo_

 _Owaranai story taemanai itoshisa de_

 _Tell me why oshiete yo zutto eien ni_


End file.
